My Demons
by MrNoobishDude
Summary: Laurel, shattered by the death of Tommy during The Undertaking, just wants to grieve. She finds comfort in Marcus Garcia, a newcomer to the Starling City with a mysterious past. But with the return of The Hood and a new vigilante killing members of Abstergo, Starling City must prepare for the coming battle...or perish to time.(Starting in Season 2)
1. Conversations

**AN: With the two stories that I have been working on, it's kinda stupid for me to make this story, but I can't help it. I've been tossing around the idea of a Arrow/Assassin's Creed crossover for awhile, and I'll fufill that promise for however long I can. And who else to assist are hero, than Laurel Lance. But for now, enjoy!**

 _ **May 18, 2013**_

For the third time today, Laurel Lance couldn't stop the steady flow of tears from sliding down her cheeks, as she stared at the photo from what felt like a lifetime ago. A photo of Tommy, Oliver, and herself when they were 13. The weather seemed to reflect the mood of today, as it was pouring rain in Starling City. All she could do now was damn herself for being so stupid.

Well, that, and drink herself into a early grave.

She royally screwed up, and because of it, not only did she lose CNRI, but Tommy, her ex-boyfriend, or current boyfriend, at this point she forgot. She cheated on him with Oliver days before his death, and yet he still gave up his life to save her. When she went back inside CNRI as it was falling apart, she got a glimpse of that _vigilante_ bastard leaving. He didn't even bother saving him, he fled, much like everyone that Laurel relied on the most.

' _Stop Laurel, you gotta compose yourself'_ she whispered to herself, as she wiped her eyes from the tears as she came back to. She was currently sitting in the corner booth in the bar, the wooden seat causing pain in her backside. She came to the bar in whatever she could find in her drawer, a pair of dark blue jeans, a T-shirt from her trip to Germany, her black hoodie, a pair of red sneakers and just tried to forget the fact that she essentially lost her life .

"Come to drown your sorrows as well, huh?" Laurel jumped at the sudden voice that interrupted her thoughts, as she gripped the table in front of her hard before, relaxing and letting go. "Sorry, didn't mean to spook you, just an inquiry." She looked behind her to see some guy currently taking a swig of whiskey before placing it down on the table, and turning to face her. Laurel got to analyze him there, soft emerald eyes, olive skin, and messy black hair, with a few strands reaching his eyebrows, a scar on the left side of his lip, a small stubble, and looked roughly the same age as her. The man offered a smile, but Laurel turned away before responding.

"Yeah, seems like a lot of people are now."

"Yup, but it doesn't take a village idiot to figure why." He let out a dark chuckle, before drinking again. He let out a sigh as he gestured to all the men and women affected by Malcom's "Undertaking" trying to drink it all away. "I can't believe that guy did this shit."

"Well, he always was an asshole." She added, before sipping her glass of vodka.

"Oh? You've seen him act like that first hand?" then man behind her asked with a hint of curiosity. She was saying too much already.

"I knew him through his… family, that's all I'm going to say." She leaned her head back on the booth and stared at the ceiling for a minute before he responded.

"You're not high right now are?" she straightened out and turned to him with a raised eyebrow, "Because it looked like you were overdosing and I wasn't gonna be seen at the crime scene." Laurel gave a small smile and scoffed.

"Charming, really. The ladies really love you." She dryly replied before taking a sip of her drink.

"Clearly, I got mad girls waiting for me," he laughed at he gestured at the empty booth, and stuck his hand out.

"Marcus Garcia, Private Investigator."

"Laurel Lance, lawyer, well, formerly of CNRI," She took his hand and shook generously, "…it would be rude if I didn't invite you to booth, so… you wanna join me?"

"Sure, two forces of the law join." He got up from his booth and sat in front of Laurel, sighing, "Man, Joseph really needs to invest in some seat cushions, these wooden benches hurt my ass." He groaned as he rubbed his lower back, and leaned back. Laurel took this chance to assess Marcus's clothes.

The man was currently wearing a black leather jacket, with a dark grey beaked hoodie sewn inside of it, a pair of gold rimmed aviators resting on the collar of his shirt, a black T-shirt with a logo of a green star with a black joystick inside the star and the words "Achievement Hunter" under the logo. Marcus was wearing a pair of straight fit blue jeans with small tears at the knee caps of his right leg, and black converse shoes. Although, the rings on his left hand seemed… odd. It had weird letters carved into the sides, and judging by the dark ink under the ring, it was covering a tattoo, or a branding she couldn't tell.

"So," he interrupted her analysis, "how is it that a former 20-something lawyer ends up in a bar drinking alone? I wonder…" he jokingly stroked his chin with his index finger and thumb and looked at the ceiling in deep thought.

"I appreciate the fact that you're trying to make me feel better… Marcus," she awkwardly chuckled before she frowned, "but I don't think it'll work. I-uh lost someone during the earthquake, and I'm not in a joking mood man."

"I think all of us lost someone or something in that earthquake. I lost more than a couple of friends in The Glades. It's all about perspective, señora. Those people that we lost, they don't have to deal with anymore crazy shit happening here in this city. I mean first, some crazy guy in green leather with a bow starts going Guy Fawkes on the elitist, and now the wannabe Merlyn and him duke it out in an effort to either save or destroy The Glades. Maybe I should've stayed in New York." He ranted before finishing the whiskey bottle and setting it aside.

"You aren't from Starling City?"

"Nope, I just moved here in February. With all the crime and misery going on here, I figured I'd set up shop here to help all the people that have been screwed over find justice."

"How? You're just a PI?"

"Exactly. I can get down and dirty In the crime scenes to find the rat bastards."

"And if you get into some bad business with criminals, what then?" she exclaimed a little too worrying.

"Don't worry," he smiled and cracked his knuckles, "I may try to diffuse a situation, but I can kick some ass. My aun- caretakers didn't raise a bitch." The both of them giggled, and when they stopped, Laurel's phone ringtone, "Diamonds" by Rihanna cut between them. Laurel fished the phone out of her pocket to check who was calling her.

' _Daddy'_

Crap, she been so busy in the bar, that she ignored her phone. Before she could answer though, the call ended, and her lock screen came up.

' _Ollie'_

' _ **4 missed calls'**_

' _Thea'_

' _ **7 missed calls'**_

' _Daddy'_

' _ **13 missed calls'**_

"God damn it.." she muttered to herself and placed her hand on her forehead. She needed to answer them but she didn't want to blow off her newest friend. Luckily, he got the notion and stood up, pulling his backpack from the floor on his shoulders.

"Well, as much as I would love to continue our conversation, It seems that you have matters to attend to. Besides, it's 1:35 in the morning and I need to get home. Hopefully, I'll see you around." He gave a warm smile before giving the two finger salute and exiting the bar.

' _Good job Marc, you have officially made yourself a drinking buddy.'_ He smiled as he walked down sidewalk on his way home. He didn't mind walking home from the bar, while the bar was about a 30-40 minute walk to his apartment in the middle of the city, he certainly wished that the bus station was open, but was undergoing repairs following the earthquake.

 _CRACK_

Marcus visibly tensed up, as that bottle smashing was too close for comfort. Marcus was being followed, but he couldn't tell if it was a gangbanger or something much more… sinister. He quickly rolled up his sleeve to give room for his hidden blade to activate, should the situation arise. Might as well try to lose them.

Marcus turned into an alley way after five minutes of trying to shake the followers, and proceeded to kick off the wall before climbing the scaffolding to try to make a game plan before these goons caught him.

' _Okay, try to find someplace to lure these guys to deal with them,'_ He scanned the rooftops before seeing a shut-down factory belonging to Merlyn Global in close proximity, ' _Score!'_ He exclaimed in his head as he hopped from roof to roof before using his rope launcher to rappel to the factory and crash through the windows and land on the scaffolding on top.

He brought his hood over his head, pulled up his black bandana to cover his lower half of his face and pull down his shades.

Soon enough, the 6 pursers made their way into the factory, four males, two females. Judging by their uniform and arsenal, they weren't common criminals, they were mercs.

"Are you sure he came in here, Jacob? 'Cause if he didn't I'm gonna kick the shit out of you!" The leader of the group questioned, aiming his M4A1 through the factory.

"I'm sure of it boss! He used his hidden blade to zipline into here, I swear!" the second merc nervously responded, shakily aiming at anything that moved.

How'd they know about the hidden blades? Oh no…

Marcus squinted as he tried to get a better look at the mercs when he caught sight of it, a small blood red cross patch on the shoulders of their uniforms.

Templar Agents.

Damn it, he really didn't want to kill today. Even worse, he didn't want reveal his vigilante persona just yet.

"Who the fuck are you?" a feminine voice came inbetween both the group and the Assassin, her thin frame stepping out from the shadows.

She wore her hair stood up in all its black glory. She had her hands in her coat pockets and mulled her feet in the factory floor, getting dirty water on her black jeans and shoes. The girl stood awkwardly at 5'7", she couldn't be older than 20.

"The real question," the leader of the agents stepped forward, "is why are you in here?" his intimidating voice muffled by his face mask, which had the distinct triangle of Abstergo Industries logo on his mask. The man towered over the petite girl.

"I-uh-uh dumpster dive here. Who are you hunting down?" she gestured to his assault rifle, and backed up.

"Normally, our target, but since you probably heard all of this.." he trailed off, before popping off a shot into her thigh and the girl screamed in pain. "She needs to go boys, then we continue the hunt."

All the men raised their M4A1's prepared to execute her. Marcus had to do something quick! He rifled through his backpack, before he pulled out a rope dart. He jumped on one of the bars supporting the roof before aiming at one of the mercs and threw the rope dart, and in successfully imbedded itself in his neck.

"Aghhhh!" the agent cried before he was pulled up to the bar before he stopped in place, and his limp body swung carelessly as Marcus landed in a crouch and implanted the other end of the dart into the floor.

"It's him! Capture him!" the leader screamed and aimed his gun at the assassins legs and opened fire. Marcus performed flips upon flips, avoiding the gunfire before side flipping into cover. He waited a couple of seconds before he heard the footsteps of an agent approach the metal table. Marcus used this chance to smack the rifle down before extending his hidden blade and stabbing his throat, stealing his rifle and getting back into cover. The agents continued firing on the table, before their guns eventually clicked empty.

Marcus used this chance to pop out of cover and open fire, aiming down the sights and scoring headshots on another male and a female agent before it went empty. In a desperate attempt to prevent them from shooting, he threw the rifle butt first into the second agent, Jacob's nose and vaulted over the cover to rush the agents. The agents seeing that it was easier to switch to their batons than reload, readied their weapons and the leader swung his baton at Marcus's head. Marcus stopped before the baton could hit him and pivoted both his hidden blades and got into combat stance. The two agents circled him like predators, until the woman agent swung her baton downwards in an attempt to smash his skull. Marcus brought his left blade up and spun it away before kicking her knee and she kneeled, before swinging his foot against her skull, knocking her down. Only one standing.

"I like you buddy boy," the leader's southern accent giving way, "but you messed up real bad, puttin' up a fight and all, because now ere gonna hurt ya, really, REALLY bad."

"I'd like to see you try asshole." Marcus spat before he swiped his blade at the leader's chest. The leader smacked his arm away before smashing his baton on Marcus's waist, staggering him for a moment, barely avoiding the strike meant to break his jaw. Marcus performed several straight stabs, his opponent blocking every one of his strikes before retaliating with a flurry of swipes. Marcus leg swept the leader, knocking him on his backside, before he tried to execute his enemy, the leader grabbing his hands, stopping him in his tracks. Marcus tried to break free, before he heard heavy foot steps behind him.

Jacob.

Marcus headbutted the leader as he freed his grip, and rolled away as Jacob smashed his baton into his superior's throat, crushing his windpipe. Jacob, shocked by the fact that he killed his boss, dropped the baton and backed up before spinning around to get a right hook from the assassin, a left hook, and finally, his opponent jumped and spun kicked him, knocking him back into the table. He didn't have time to recover from the strike as he felt the pain of the blade enter his throat, and stared at his killer, before he felt the rest of his throat slice open, bleeding out.

The fight was over. Marcus won, and he could get the hell out of here, until her heard the groan of the female agent, blood pooling from the right side of her head. Marcus walked up to her and placed his hand under her chin, prepared to activate the blade, when the victim from earlier groaned.

"Don't… hurt her." She pleaded, balancing herself on the railing, breathing heavily. Marcus, with no other choice, sheathed his blade and kicked the agent on the side of the head again, knocking her out cold. The assassin quickly made way to the girl, and assessed the damage.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. Those guys wanted to do some serious damage." He apologized and explained, checking out the wound thoroughly.

"Yeah, no shit" she groaned as she tried to null the pain while her savior helped her out.

"Luckily for you, bullet went out clean, but I'd still get medical attention," He assured her, "C'mon, we need to get you outside." He assisted her outside the factory.

"Why were those guys after you?" the girl breathed out, gripping his arm, as he avoided looking at her.

"None of your concern. Trust me, you're better off not knowing." He replied as he took his bag off, pulling out a first aid kit to surture her wounds. After getting the bullet out, he doused her wound in hydrogen peroxide, and wrapped her leg in a bandage. "It'll hold for now, but you'll need to call 911." He informed her. After that, he patted her shoulder and walked two feet to the abandoned apartment complex. Prepared to free run, he backed up, when the mystery woman called out.

"Who are you?"

Marcus turned back to the girl and gave an answer.

"Eagle Eye," he ran up the wall and climbed up the windows, and reached the top.

"And you?" The girl smiled painfully.

"Sin."

 **A/N: And like that, this chapter is finished! I hope you enjoyed this prologue and leave a favorite and follow, as I will try to have chapter 2 up soon, starting in the episode "City of Heroes". But for now here's the dossier.**

 **Name: Marcus Antonio Garcia**

 **DOB: 10/15/1984**

 **Birthplace: Edinburg, Texas**

 **Known places of residence: Starling City, California(presumably), Queens, New York**

 **Ethnicity: Mexican-American**

 **Height: 6'2"**

 **Weight: 210 lbs**

 **Eye Color: Emerald**

 **Hair Color: Black**

 **Vigilante attire: Black leather jacket with a dark grey beaked hoodie sewn into it, Black Bandana with a scarlet red assassin logo in the middle, black fingerless gloves, dark blue jeans ripped on the right, Black converse.**

 **Gear: A short katana, the pommel wrapped in black and red grip. Dual Hidden Blades which contain rope launchers and pivot blades. ACR with Holo sight, silencer, and grenade launcher. A silenced M1911. Rope darts. Throwing knifes. Smoke bombs. Posion darts.**

 **Identifiable marks: Assassin logo on his ring finger, a scar on the left side of his lip, multiple stab scars on chest, 3 bullet wounds on his chest.**

 **Lineage: Connor Kenway, Colonial Brotherhood(1756-?)**

 **Edward Jimenez, Mexican Brotherhood(1792-1866)**

 **Andrew Garcia, American Brotherhood(1924-2000)**


	2. City of Heroes

**October 9, 2013**

 **Marcus**

 **City Hall, 5 months later…**

Marcus wasn't one for social events, as he was a bit of an introvert in big gatherings like this benefit, but seeing as he worked very closely with the district attorney for the past three cases, he felt at the very least obligated to stay for an hour. Besides, Laurel was there to keep him company if he got bored. As for now, Marcus fiddled with the sleeves of his tuxedo jacket as he chimed in the conversation the Mayor and the ADA Adam Donner.

"Wasn't our country founded on a brand of vigilantism, Mr. Donner?" The Mayor inquired, "The revolutionaries in the Boston Tea Party were certainly choosing justice over law."

"I'd hardly compare our founding fathers to the Hood, Mr. Mayor, or the twisted copycats who have risen in his wake, group or solo." Adam argued.

"I'm with the mayor on this on, Don," Marcus chimed in, before continuing, "These guys have the right idea, just horrible means of executing them. I've never felt safer walking down the streets."

"So you endorse these so called 'Heroes', Mr. Garcia?" Adam pressed.

"In a sense, yes. This "Eagle Eye" vigilante is going around The Glades, and sometimes, in Starling, preventing these crimes from happening."

"And the copycat hoods?"

"No," Marcus replied with a hint of disgust in his voice, "those guys murder anyone they choose and call it 'justice."' He finished, and looked over the Adam and grinned at the woman walking down the steps, "What do you think about these vigilantes Ms. Lance?"

"I'd be foolish to disagree with my new boss." She replied with a small smile as she stood beside Marcus.

"I knew I was smart to hire you." Donner boasted as Marcus let out a chuckle.

"I heard you joined the district attorney's office." The Mayor turned to Laurel.

"It was time for a change." Laurel simply stated, although Marcus already knew the reason why she didn't get into specifics.

"Still, I'm sorry that you and your colleagues at CNRI won't be opening your doors again." He lied, although from the perspective of two people working in law enforcement, it didn't fool them.

"Unfortunately, there were no doors left to be reopened." She stated with a hint of regret in her voice. Laurel took Marcus's hand into hers as a sign of comforting herself, as a series of musical chimes went off.

"They're playing my song." The mayor said, speeding off to the podium as he was introduced.

"Good evening. It has been a very difficult year for Starling City. Our losses have been incalculable, our grief unimaginable. But with the generous donations you people are making tonight, we will come back from this tragedy-" he started, before someone interrupted him.

"You have failed this city, Mr. Mayor! The Glades have descended into hell on your watch! You swore to protect all the citizens of Starling, not just the wealthy!" the voice echoed throughout the City Hall, stopping everyone in their tracks.

"Laurel… I got a bad fe-" Marcus tried to tell his friend when the mayor was peppered with bullets. Civilians began screaming as the mean armed to the teeth and in Kevlar made way down the stairs, shredding any cops who opposed them. Two of them walked up to the Donner one of them pulling out a pistol and taking aim at him.

"Mr. District Attorney-" he began before Laurel and Marcus sprang into action. Laurel grabbed the attackers gun and sent a couple of heavy elbows into the man's face, knocking him down.

Meanwhile, Marcus threw a punch at the man with his AR, landing on his jaw and staggering the copycat. Marcus used this chance to tackle him, and steal his rifle, aiming at the man's chest. In the heat of the moment, Marcus took aim at the leg of his attacker, and pulled the trigger.

 _CLICK!_

'You've got to be kidding me.' Marcus thought. Before he could try to subdue the man in another way, he heard the cocking of another gun. He turned to face the attacker, who was aiming at Laurel, and instructing her to drop the pistol she'd manage to take. The man looked at Marcus, and did the same.

"Your friend has some amazing luck, I'll give him that…" he muttered to the man panting on the floor before tossing the gun aside and keeping his hands up as a means of surrender. The man got back up and reloaded his rifle, the man aiming at Marcus's face. While Marcus was stoic, Laurel was almost shaking with either rage or fear.

"We are the Hoods," the head honcho spoke as the both of them stared, "And what was taken from us, we will take back." The man fired, only for the distinctive click of an empty gun to greet their ears. Had Marcus been in his 'Eagle Eye' setup, he would've brutalized the fuckers. But since he wasn't, he could only scream in his head as Laurel jumped slightly as the attackers left the building. Marcus wasted no time rushing towards Laurel.

"Holy fuck Laurel! He almost-almost…" Marcus couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, as it would bombard his mind with the awful scenarios that could've played out.

"I-I know." She barely whispered, a tear sliding down her cheek. God, she was dancing with death at this point. She grabbed her hair and pulled as a form of stress relief.

"If that doesn't qualify as having balls, I don't know what does." Marcus quipped, and Laurel couldn't help but smile at his remark.

 **20 minutes later…**

"Laurel!" Detective Lance ran down the stairs and embraced his daughter tightly, and Laurel returned the favor.

"Dad, I'm fine." She protested. ADA Donner walked up to the family and Marcus.

"You've got one very brave daughter there, sir."

"Yeah, one daughter's right, and I can't stand to lose another" Quentin firmly replied.

"I don't understand, these hoods attacks have strictly been limited to people in the financial sector trying to redistribute wealth in the Glades at gunpoint." Donner quizzically replied.

"Yeah, well, clearly that's not getting the result they're looking for is it?" Quentin sarcastically replied, before walking off with his two witnesses, "Did any of you get a good look at any of them?"

"It was hard to focus on anything other than the gun barrel pointed at my face." Laurel gave her response.

"Nothing. These guys were clean cut, covered head to toe, no tattoos, nada." Marcus replied. Guys must've been Navy SEALs or something...

"What do you think you're doing?" The trio looked to the staircase to see Lieutenant Pike making way towards him. "Interviewing the witness is the job of the Detective, Officer Lance."

"This is my daughter, she was nearly killed tonight." Lance said in a plea to stay.

"Well, as a parent, you're welcome to stay." He said. "But as a beat cop, you're more than free to go." Pike snarkily replied as he left.

"What a prick…" Marcus sighed.

"It's not like that," Lance said, "I was aiding a wanted criminal."  
"Nevertheless, you got the drop on Malcom Merlyn's plan and saved at least almost half the Glades! It doesn't matter if you were helping the vigilante, you're a hero."

"Apparently the department doesn't think so. One of the downsides of being demoted- I don't get to witness his sunny disposition on a daily basis." Lance joked. Laurel and Marcus looked up to see Oliver Queen walking down the stairs, before joining them.

"Oliver."

"Laurel."

…

"Am I not supposed to notice this vibranium-strong tension?" Marcus spoke, breaking the awkward silence, tapping his pants as a mean to relieve stress. Laurel broke from whatever trance she was in and spoke.

"Oliver, this is Marcus. Marcus, Oliver." She introduced. Marcus stuck his hand out his hand to shake Oliver's, and Oliver gave a firm grip that Marcus returned.

"Nice to meet you. From what I've heard, you're considered infamous." Marcus politely greeted.

"I've been working on that for the past year." Oliver responded

"Well, I sure hope that you can find your redemption." Marcus gave a warm smile as he let go of his hand.

"Can we have a minute?" Oliver asked Laurel, and she nodded and walked off with Oliver, while Quentin and Marcus stood side-by-side.

"What do you think they're talking about?" Marcus inquired.

"Probably Tommy and Oliver's leave of absence."

"Tommy, that's her ex, right?"

"Yeah." Both of them sighed, and Marcus rolled up his cuff to check his watch.

"As much as I would love to stay here, I've got to go to my office and write down some notes and see if I can scan the scene, try to find something to put these guys in prison."

"I doubt the station will let you. Besides, what will you do once you find these guys?" Quentin asked and Marcus chuckled.

"I've got some friends in high and low places. I'll figure it out." And with that, he left. Quentin sighed again, and fished out his phone to call a his "associate's associate".

"Waitwaitwait, tell Laurel to call me, I need to ask her for a favor." Marcus popped out of nowhere, Quentin having to restrain himself, seeing as he almost punched Marcus.

"Christ… yeah, yeah I'll tell her when she and Oliver are done." Quentin clutched his heart as Marcus clicked his tongue and shot finger guns at him as he walked down the steps.

 **Hawk Firm, somewhere near The Glades**

The familiar smell of nicotine and alcohol greeted Marcus's nostrils as he stepped into his dingy office. The office wasn't the best or the biggest, but it got the job done for Marcus. Marcus flicked the switch to the ceiling fan to combat the heat of the room. At least he managed to change into his normal clothes, which was a plaid red shirt, black Breaking Benjamin t-shirt, blue jeans, and red converse, aka, his "Canadian look" as he called it.

Marcus rummaged through the drawers of his desk, searching for his note pad and a pencil, placing the various items in the desk on top of it.

'Desk fan, whiskey, cigarettes, .45 bullets, walkman…' he narrated as he in a sense took inventory, careful not to bury his laptop. Someone had to do some fall cleaning. Finally, he found said items at the bottom of the bottom drawer, since it had been over 2 weeks since he did some work. Although his last client had compensated… generously.

"And in local news, billionaire Oliver Queen has once again returned to Starling City." The news reporter announced from the small 30 inch TV on Marcus's desk in the middle of the room. Marcus took a seat in his cheap office chair, and began the process of putting everything back in the drawer, except for the cigarettes. Seeing as tonight was stressful, he pulled out his steel lighter and lit it, occasionally dumping the ashes as he began to write notes:

 _Copycat hoods notes_

 _Body Armor_

 _Armed with Assault rifles_

 _4 men, one black, three white_

 _Possibly veterans(?)_

 _One an amputee_

Marcus leaned back into his seat as he replayed the memory in his head over and over again, analyzing the situation. For now, he wanted to keep this from the detectives to prevent more police casualties. Maybe 'Eagle Eye' could take them down a peg.

 _Take me high and I'll sing_

 _Oh you make everything okay(okay, okay)_

Marcus slightly jumped at the sudden music coming from his phone, and quickly grabbed his phone, seeing as that was Laurel's ringtone.

 _Save me if I become_

 _My demons_

 _*BEEP*_

"Laurel?" Marcus asked.

"Yup, that's me," Laurel dryly responded, and Marcus chuckled at the reference, "my dad said for me to call you."

"Yeah. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm back at my apartment, a little shaken, but calm."

"Good. Say, did you by any chance notice anything odd about those copycats?"

"Marcus, I said there that I didn't notice-"

"Yes, but I can tell when you are lying, and so can your dad." Marcus stated, hoping to coax her into spilling the beans. Laurel sighed heavily and went silent for a few seconds.

"One of those guys was missing his hand or something, seemed weird."

"Huh, I was right," he muttered and placed a checkmark next to that clue, "you saw the guys face, did you notice the guys eye color?"

"No, I could only focus on the pistol."

"Fuck," Marcus muttered again, "ok, well if you need anything, coffee, a friend, call me. Stay safe Laurel."

"Likewise, Marcus." Laurel said before hanging up. Marcus placed his phone on top of the desk, and sighed. So he wasn't getting much info with Marcus, Eagle Eye however…

Yeah, he wasn't gonna refer to himself in the third person again.

Marcus promptly stood up and walked into the storage closet in the office and pulled a crate out under the cot chained to the wall for whenever Marcus needed a snooze. Popping open the crate, Marcus began to put on his vigilante gear. And as lame as he thought it was, he pressed a hidden panel on his wall, and the wall disappeared and displayed the weapons and ammo he left there that weren't exactly sane leaving out. Rifles, Shotguns, pistols, blades, explosives… you name it.

Since he was going to interrogate, he secure his hidden blades on his wrist, and flicked them to check if they would jam or not. Seeing as they weren't screwed up, he grabbed a few throwing knives and a couple smoke bombs.

Just as a backup, he took his two M1911s with him, sliding both into his hip holsters and clipping ammo to his chest.

'Alright, time to go to work.'

 **The Glades**

 _1:15 A.M._

 _Thursday, October 10, 2013_

Marcus groaned in response. He'd spent the last 2 hours trying to find a source of information, and came up dryer than the Mojave Desert. Marcus's arm lazily swung from side to side from the edge of the building, and looked at the stars, trying to spot a constellation or a helicopter or something, occasionally checking a small radio he 'borrowed' from an officer.

' _WHOOSH'_

Marcus's head whipped behind him, and stood up, ready for combat to be greeted with an empty roof. Marcus checked his six, and pulled one of his pistols from his holster.

'Huh, maybe it's my imagination.' Marcus told himself, and after a few seconds, gunfire erupted from a rundown apartment complex nearby. Marcus made way, leaping from roof to roof, sliding under and vaulting over objects, occasionally performing flips and cheat gainers.

C'mon, like he wasn't going to have an audience.

After leaping from the building to the 3rd floor, he began to climb the windows and reach the 6th floor. Grabbing onto the window he activated his Eagle Vision to see where the gunman were and hoping not to accidently barge into their room and get shot up. Jamming his hidden blade to where the window lock was, he shook it a few times before the lock popped. It was times like these that he was glad that his hidden blade was essentially Valyrian steel.

Marcus swiftly brought himself in the medium sized apartment and closed the window, then silently unlocked the door and peeked into the hallway, making sure no one was there. Satisfied that the narrow hall was empty, he activated his Eagle Vision again and found the door in which 4 men were standing, and braced himself against the wall.

" _Jesus Christ! You said you weren't going to kill him!"_ One of the men said, his terrified voice breaking through the thin walls.

" _I didn't! He-he's still alive, oh my god."_ The second one holding an Uzi responded, quaked in fear and pacing through the room.

" _I knew we shouldn't have given him the gun! He's a rash person, of course he couldn't have taken the friggin' insult! Now we're going to jail, I have a daughter, damn it!"_ The third one screamed at the first man, grabbing him by the shirt, and pointing at the man on the floor, crying out in pain.

" _Hey, hey! If we panic right now, the only thing we're gonna be is dead!"_ the final one barked. _"Look, I know a guy from high school that's been dealing in clean ups and shit, I can call him to get rid of the gun and get him to shut up about this."_ He pointed to the victim, shaking.

" _How does an information broker come into contact with a clean up guy?"_ the first guy asked, head against the wall.

" _I'd rather you didn't know."_

Seeing that the victim would surely bleed out soon, Marcus backed up from the wooden door and kicked it in, the door almost splintering into pieces. The men were taken aback, but Marcus had already began to lay into the closest one next to him, grabbing his arm and throwing him over his shoulder and tossing him to the ground.

Marcus quickly pulled a throwing knife from his shoulder and tossed it to the man with the SMG, hitting the weapon out of his hands, and causing the man to grab his hand and recover from the force, although he didn't have to fight back as Marcus had already leaped and kicked him in the face, sending him to the floor. As soon as he landed, Marcus had gone low and leg swept the third man, said person falling flat on their ass.

Marcus's ears picked up loud footsteps behind him, and he promptly rolled out of the way for the man he'd attacked first to smash a baseball bat into the floor that's design was slowly chipping away. Marcus kicked him square in the chest sending him to the entrance, and sprinted to him. Opening the door, he placed the man's arm in the door frame and slammed the door on it twice, breaking his arm, before the man slumped over and he kicked the door in on his forehead, knocking the man out.

By now, the third man had grabbed the baseball bat and slammed it on Marcus's back, causing Marcus to cry in pain and clutch at where he was struck, and fall to the floor as the man hit the back of his leg. The man kept on assaulting Marcus's leg as the second one joined in, trying to punch Marcus's face, but he'd brought his hands up to avoid serious injuries. The fourth man was hiding in the bedroom, if Marcus could remember, although it was hard to recall while being assaulted.

As if whatever divine being existed decided that Marcus had gotten enough, someone had crashed through the window, catching all the men's attention, more in surprise than laughing at what she was wearing. The woman was fully decked out in black leather, combat pants, leather jacket, and a leather top, although her top exposed some of her bust and her jacket was up to her wrist and to top it all off, she wore a black face mask, covering her eyes. The woman also appeared to have bleach blonde hair, though Marcus though it looked somewhat fake.

The woman pulled a metal bo staff from her back, then pulled them apart to make them into batons. Hoping to take her down easy, the man with a baseball bat ran at her and tried to swipe it at her head, but she brought her left baton up and parried it, before bashing him on his waist with the baton, and then sucker punched him in the face. He clutched his nose and groaned in pain, and didn't see the right hook she threw, spinning him around, and she finally bashed the back of his head with the pommel of the baton. She turned to tend to the bleeding man on the floor.

Marcus used this chance to bring his legs up and lock them around the right arm of second man and twist it, rolling him to the floor and Marcus ensnared him in a grapple hold, pulling the man's arm towards him as the man struggled, then slowly passed out due to the pain. Releasing the man, he stood up and went to the bedroom door, but it wouldn't budge. Seeing that his attempt were futile, he backed up and turned to the mystery woman.

"Hey, is he still breathing?" he questioned, hoping that a civilian didn't die on his watch. She faced the man with stone cold eyes and nodded. The victim had a bullet wound in his left pectoral and his two in his left shoulder. He sighed in relief, and nodded towards the door, "You wanna help me with this?"

The woman stood up and joined him at the door. Marcus pulled his pistol, and fired at where the lock was, and began to push against the door, twisting the doorknob as well, with the woman doing the same. Struggling, they pushed into the door harder, knocking items down doing so. Seems like the fourth guy tried to barricade the room. Finally, after one more body slam against the door, the heavy object fell and crashed, sending glass everywhere.

Stepping inside, they caught the man barely opening the window. In an attempt from keeping the man from jumping out, Marcus aimed his pistol and fired, hitting the man in the leg, sending him to the floor clutching his leg. While he secured the room, the woman walked to the man, and violently grabbed him and tossed him into the cheap metal bedframe. The man groaned in pain, and began pleading with the woman, while Marcus joined her.

"Go easy for now, then you can beat the hell out of him, okay?" he put his arm in between them, waiting for an answer. Reluctantly, she nodded yes, and Marcus gave a small grin, "Good, we can at least do this peacefully."

"Peacefully?! You shot me in the fucking leg and Bruce Lee'd my friends out there!" the man screamed at them, and held his tongue when Marcus brought his pistol to his temple, and the woman lifted his chin with her baton.

"Don't speak unless spoken to dumbass." The woman's distorted voice stopped him, and he swallowed the lump in his throat. Marcus chuckled, and turned to her,

"Huh, you DO speak. For a second there I thought you were some sort of mute."

"Well, it seemed like you didn't have a clapback, and I took the chance." The woman slyly quipped, and Marcus shrugged.

"Anyways, one of those goons said you were a information broker, correct?"

"Wha-? Yes, yes sir, I'm-I'm-I'm a info broker." He stuttered, barely managing to get the words out.

"What can you tell me about the copycat hoods that attacked city hall earlier?" Marcus inquired, pulling the gun from the man's temple.

"Copycat hoods? Um… I overheard some girl down at the Patty Shack in 5th and Brewer mention that she saw some guys in military gear in a destroyed church a few blocks from here every couple of nights."

"The one used for the 'Standing Strong' foundation?" the woman asked.

"Yeah."

"Did she say how many?" Marcus asked this time.

"About 3-4 men. These guys killed the mayor?"

"Yes," Marcus confirmed, "The police report said that they mentioned that he only protected the 1%, these guys must be local to here."

"Maybe they were victims of the earthquake?" the man curiously asked, before clutching his wound. Marcus went to the curtains and ripped a piece off, handing the cloth to the man.

"Yeah, four guys affected by the earthquake, a support group is an easy place to find four other people angry enough to go up against the mayor and multiple police officers." Marcus told himself. Shortly after, police sirens could be heard blaring down the street, before stopping outside the hotel. Marcus went to the window and saw the red and blue lights bouncing off the wall of the next building.

'Landlord must've called the cops.' He thought, and turned to find that the woman who had saved him had disappeared. Swearing under his breath, he stepped away from the window.

"Hey, I gave you some information! You can't leave me here!" the man screeched, trying to stand up, and fall back down. Marcus pulled his hood even more forward, masking all but his lips and chin in a dark shadow.

"You should have thought about that before you aided in an attempted murder. Try not to struggle to much when they read you their Miranda's." he casually replied before he kong vaulted out the window and rolled on the roof a floor below him, sprinting to the edge of that roof and dropping into an open trash bin currently occupied with a dirty mattress.

"Are you fu-" the man tried to swear, but was cut off by a few officers raiding the room, Officer Lance being one of them. Quentin holstered his pistol and took out his handcuffs and began to arrest the man. Looks like Eagle Eye simultaneously made his job easier and more difficult again.

 **La Classe Moyenne**

Sighing, Marcus entered his apartment and locked the door, tossing his keys on the end table next to the door and kicking off his shoes and proceeding to the freezer to grab an ice pack. He'd went back to his office and got back into his regular clothes, and took the bus back to his apartment. While his face wasn't going to bruise because he managed to protect his face, his back would be hell in the morning. Luckily, Marcus healed a bit fast after years of working with the Assassin's Brotherhood.

Marcus's apartment wasn't much, then again, you wouldn't go all out in an apartment that literally translated to "Middle Class" in French. In his living room, he had his black Linen sofa pushed against the dull white walls, and two other black couches flanking the coffee table in the middle of the furniture, and Marcus's 64 inch flat screen on a black wooden IKEA TV stand 2-3 feet in front of it, his cheap shelf in the corner, holding DVDs, Blu Ray discs, Video Games, and various gaming accessories like his headset and controllers, his graphic novel collection taking up the bottom row.

In an effort to spice up his place, he'd hung up multiple bulk canvases around, from scenery he did in high school to art he'd bought at the nearest superstore like his adored 'Good Burger' and 'Fallout: New Vegas' pieces. It was every nerd's dream.

Passing his living room, he entered his kitchen and opened his silver refrigerator, and grabbed a beer bottle, before opening the freezer on top and grabbing a pre made ice pack for these situations. He set them both on his marble countertop, and took a painkiller he left on his island, along with his fruit bowl and his Bluetooth speaker.

Mixing alcohol with meds wasn't exactly a welcomed idea, but Marcus didn't give a damn right about now, as he put the pill in his mouth and took a swig of the beer. Shivering at the cold liquid running down his throat, he made way to his room to take a shower and prepare for bed, taking the alcohol with him. Yeah, this was a record for a new low in his life.

After finishing that routine and brushing his teeth, he stepped out of his restroom in his white tank top and black basketball shorts, placing the empty beer bottle on his nightstand and grabbing the TV remote, hoping into bed.

Positioning himself on the bed with the icepack, he brought the thick blanket over himself and turned on the TV, the screen starting up and displaying the time.

 _2:46 A.M._

Damn, he was becoming a bit of an insomniac. Marcus put on a movie that he'd seen a million times already and used it to put himself to sleep.

 **Laurel**

 **The next afternoon**

Something was off today.

Normally, Laurel had the same feeling everyday nowadays. But now, her gut told her something was going to happen today. She didn't know what, and it freaked her out.

Stepping into her office, she set her beige coat on her chair, and began to work on her assigned case at the moment for about ten minutes, when a co-worker sped walked through her office.

"Woah, what's going on?" she hastily caught up to her, curiosity getting the better of her. Speed walking in heels was tough work, man.

"There was a shootout at Queen Consolidated. No one's dead, but some there was one guy who got knocked out apparently."

"Did they say who?"

"Some executive, late 40s. He's fine though." The woman responded, entering the news room, where several employees, including Adam were staring at the TVs on the walls. Laurel's phone began to ring, playing "Best of You" by the Foo Fighters. Reaching into her suits pants, she pulled out her phone and hit the answer button.

"Hello?"

"Laurel, you seeing the news?" Marcus voice came from her smartphone, concern for his friend.

"Yeah, luckily no one was hurt." She assured him.

"Cool. Listen, did you take your lunch yet?"

"No, since we usually go every Thursday and Friday. Speaking of which…" she drawled out, that was the other odd thing about today.

"Yeah, sorry about that, I got home late last night, and I knocked out. Whaddya say, Big Belly Burger?"

"You know the way to a woman's heart there, hotshot." She chuckled, walking to her office to get her coat.

"Damn straight. I'll meet you there, later."

"Bye." She grinned, and hung up as she slid into her coat and told her boss she was taking her lunch break.

 **Later that day…**

Laurel really enjoyed these long walks with Marcus. Her hours had ended about 20 minutes ago, and she met with Marcus, taking an evening stroll around the neighborhood of her office. Their walks had always brought a sense of tranquility and humor with them, something she'd long for since Tommy's passing. Even though it was months ago, it still burned her soul, that she couldn't save her lover, who had save her in the end.

"So, yeah, that's my story of my dickery as a sophomore. I ended up getting caught and suspended for a week for pushing the trash cans down the stairs. That, and helping the janitors clean every afternoon for that semester." Marcus concluded, and Laurel giggled, bringing her hand to her mouth.

"Wow, that must've been awful."

"Meh," he waved her off, "I usually did the cleaning around the house during my teen years. What DID suck was when they had me clean the boys restroom, god that was hell."

"I can't imagine what that was like."

"Trust me, you never want to. It was bad enough walking in there, since it smelled like marinating urine, but even worse when they threw the toilet paper rolls in the toilet. People couldn't hold it in apparently, since they still used it to relieve themselves." He shuddered, and Laurel groaned in disgust, but still grinning.

"Ugh, that's nasty. The janitor just put you to do that?" she questioned revoltingly.

"If he was in a bad mood, yes. I remember throwing up in one, then having to clean that up as well," he clutched his stomach, and fake retched, "It was one of the worst experiences in my life. And you? Do anything fucked up in high school?"

"Not fucked up, per se," she casually replied, using air quotes at 'fucked up', "I just dated a couple of bad boys."

"Oooooooooooo, do tell." Marcus squealed, drawing that infectious smile from Laurel she knew he loved.

"There was that guy with the wrist tattoo of a guitar chord, Oliver, Tommy…" she stopped speaking, and her face softened.

"Tommy? You've mentioned him a lot, but I've never met him." Marcus lied, though she could tell, Marcus wasn't an idiot, and neither was she.

"He-he died during 'The Undertaking' a few months back." She blurted out, getting the burden off her chest.

"Oh. I'm sorry for prying, Laurel. He's the one you were mourning when we first met?"

"Yes."

"Damn. He's the son of that asshole who did this in the first place. Again, I'm so-" he tried to apologize, when Laurel embraced him in a friendly hug, and Marcus returned it. They stood there for a minute, just hugging.

 _It's a Jungle out there!_

 _Doot doot do doot doot!_

"What was that?" Laurel had pulled her arms back and scratched her head. Marcus fished for his phone in his pocket.

"Sorry, I got a text." He chuckled as his face turned red with embarrassment. He pulled his phone from his pocket and unlocked his phone, before tapping on his screen.

"Oh crap." He muttered to himself. The feeling of dread kicked in again for Laurel and she stepped towards him.

"What is it?"

"It's your friend, Thea. The copycat hoods held up Verdant and took her."

"What?!" Laurel exclaimed, worry in her voice. Her friend was in trouble by the vigilantes, giving her another reason to catch them and bring them to justice.

"I'm sorry, Laurel, as much as I would love to stay, I've been called to investigate."

"By who?"

"SCPD. Stay safe, Laurel. Go to your place and double lock it. I'll call you later." And with that, he left her.

 **Marcus**

 **The Glades**

Marcus was sprinting from the roofs, diving and jumping on and through the battered and wrecked buildings, using Eagle Vision to find the gold path to his destination. Now was as good of a time as any to check the church.

He'd did some investigating beforehand, sweeping the club and questioning Queen's boyfriend, Roy. When Roy had said that one of the hoods was missing some of his hand. Marcus excused himself, and bolted to his office to get in gear.

So here he was, in most of his gear, ACR, his short katana, pistols and enough ammo for a 10 minute firefight. Reaching the church, he opened a small hatch on the roof and dropped in the top floor, landing silently. Peeking over the railing he saw that one of the men was aiming his sidearm at her head. Marcus was about to interject, when something strike the gun from the man's hand.

A green arrow.

If Marcus wasn't in shock that The Hood was still alive, he'd be giddy with excitement, but seeing that a woman had nearly died, he cleared his head and focused on the situation at hand.

"Get away from her!" The Hood roared, and ducked as the copycats opened fire on him, The REAL Hood taking cover behind a pillar. It was then that The Hood had noticed Eagle Eye. He raised an eyebrow, and Eagle Eye had signaled him that he had the three on his right, and The Hood could take the two closest to Queen, Starling's Vigilante nodding. Both headed to the ground floor.

One of the hoods rounded the corner, only to have his mouth covered by Eagle Eye, and dragged into the darkness, being effectively subdued. without killing him, of course. One of hoods noticed, and aimed at Eagle Eye, and fired. Luckily, Marcus front flipped over the podium, and took cover. Unslinging his rifle, he began to fire wildly at the two hoods grouped around a pillar. Reloading his rifle, his Eagle Vision kicked in, slowing time down slightly, allowing Marcus to hit the two hoods in the shoulder, taking them down. Sprinting to where they fell, he gave one the heel, and sucker punched the second one, taking care of his targets.

He looked up to see The Hood holding the one who threatened Thea, by the wrist, the copycat dangling from the railing, an arrow sticking out from his chest.

"You shoot me, we both die." The Hood told the man, barely holding onto him.

"You'll drop me anyways. I know you, you're a killer." The copycat hood replied. The Hood snarled, then grabbed him with his other hand and pulled him up. Eagle Eye used this moment to wall run, and pull himself over the railing. He glanced at the criminal, then The Hood.

"We should turn them in."

 **Several minutes later…**

"Keep it under 40 next time. Have a good night." Officer Lance, told the driver, giving him a speeding ticket, and watched him take off. Walking to his squad car, to find Eagle Eye leaning on his trunk and The Hoods handcuffed to the chain link fence. Eagle Eye got off the trunk, and Quentin drew his firearm when The TRUE Hood emerged from behind the fence.

"You know who they are?" The Hood asked.

"The hoods give me a pretty good idea." Quentin replied, gun still trained on the vigilantes.

"Bring 'em in." Eagle Eye's modified voice told the cop.

"So what, you both working together now?" Quentin asked, pointing at the both of them. Marcus glanced at The Hood, he did the same, before they answered.

"Yes."

"Where were you? Typically, when I bring your victims in, there a little more dead." He told The Hood.

"I'm trying another way." He softly replied, before he pulled an arrow from his quiver and fired it, riding the zipline he fired. Eagle Eye aimed his hidden blade to the same location, and was lifted to the building he shot at, landing a couple of seconds later with The Hood.

"Hey, thanks for the back up at the church." Eagle Eye called out to his fellow vigilante.

"I'm just doing what's necessary." He coolly replied, walking away. He stopped in his tracks with Eagle Eye's next comment.

"You can take off the hood, Oliver."

Oliver Queen damn near snapped his new compound bow with his hand. He told Felicity that he'd avoid killing, but this man figured out his true identity. Oliver pulled his hood down and turned to face Eagle Eye, to be greeted with Marcus with his hood down.

"Trust me, I know the voice you used at the church, it's the voice of a concern brother." Marcus smugly smirked, and had his arms crossed.

"And how is that?"

"It takes a concerned brother to know one."

 _ **AN: And like that, City of Heroes is done! I would have finished this sooner, but with school has been a pain in my booty. I'm just glad it wasn't five months 'till I published this chapter.**_

 _ **However, it may or may not be ya boi's birthday, and he stayed up 'till 5 in the morning to finish this chapter…**_

 _ **But for now, Have a nice day.**_


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